Earlier in our blog, we talked about what you should do if you think your wages are about to be garnished. See Worried About Wage Garnishment?
But what if the worst has already happened, and your wages have been garnished. Maybe you knew nothing about it – one day, out of the blue, you find that your paycheck is smaller than usual – you go to your boss or HR administrator and learn that you have been sued and there is a default judgment against you. Legally, it’s not supposed to happen this way, but we see it all the time.
Or maybe you knew it was coming – you received a letter from an alleged creditor, claiming they have a judgment against you, a letter from a City Marshal, or a letter from your employer, saying you have been sued, there is a judgment against you and your wages are about to be garnished.
Whether or not you had warning, you can fight back against wage garnishment, even if you think you owe the debt. A good debt defense and credit damage lawyer can help you stop the garnishment and assert legal rights that may have been violated in the garnishment process. There is a procedure, requiring notice to you, that a creditor must follow in order to legally garnish your wages, and there are limits on what percentage of your income can be garnished. See details at New York’s Community Economic Justice Resource Center website here. A good lawyer can also help you assert rights that may have been violated by the creditor in the process of obtaining the default judgment against you. So don’t give up – you can fight back.
-Sheril Stanford